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BUSINESS ENGLISH · BUSINESS ISSUES · INTERMEDIATE (B1-B2)

KEEPING
DISABILITIES
SECRET
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1 Warm up
In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. In your country, what help is given to people with disabilities?

2. Is there any help given to people with disabilities in your company?
3. How many days can you be off work with a medical problem in your country/company and still be
paid?

2 Focus on vocabulary
Part A: Match the vocabulary to the definitions.

1. painkiller (n) a. a medical condition which leaves the person feeling deeply
unhappy and without hope
2. therapist (n) b. a sensation that something very bad is going to happen in
future
3. depression (n) c. unable to hear well or at all

4. panic (n) d. negative feelings people generally have towards a particular

thing
5. anxiety (n) e. a medical professional who helps with a particular type of
problem
6. deaf (adj.) f. a feeling of being very scared or worried which stops you
from thinking clearly
7. stigma (n) g. a physical or mental condition which prevents someone
doing certain activities that people who don’t have it can do
8. disability (n) h. any type of medicine that reduces the effects of a headache,
backache etc.

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Part B: Now complete the following sentences with a different part of speech of the word in brackets
from Part A.

1. The plant is highly valued for its properties. (painkiller)

2. I’ve found that was incredibly helpful for me. (therapist)

3. He’s been quite ever since his car accident. (depression)

4. I’m really worried that I’m not prepared well enough for the interview and I’ve been feeling
all morning. (panic)

5. She has to give a presentation this afternoon and she’s very about it. (anxiety)

6. The music was loud even though it was 2 am. We had to call the police. (deaf)

7. He never pursued his love of ballet because of the way his father had it over the
years. (stigma)

8. The operation was a massive success, but he is still slightly and unable to walk for
long periods of time. (disability)

Now in pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. What conditions do people usually go and see a therapist for in your country?
2. Do people talk about depression in your country? Or is there a stigma about it?
3. Have you ever been in a situation that made you panic? What happened?
4. Do you know anyone who is partly or completely deaf? What help do they get?
5. Have you ever needed to take painkillers for something? What was it for? What happened?

3 Listening for gist

Listen to the three speakers and underline the correct option for each sentence.

1. Speaker 1 suffers from a back/neck injury.

2. Speaker 2 has problems with her physical/mental health.

3. Speaker 3 isn’t able to see/hear properly.

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4 Listening comprehension

Listen again and tick the correct boxes in the following table.

Who... Speaker 1 Speaker 2 Speaker 3

a. doesn’t want to
return to the office?

b. likes to play music

while they work?

c. needs to see a
medical professional?

d. isn’t always
comfortable in a
chair?

e. worries what their

colleagues will think
about them?

f. is happy to be able
to wear headphones?

5 Scanning for details

Find the following numbers in the article on page four and match them to their meaning.

12.8 17 2 25 33 3.8 4.4 74

a. the number of people (in millions) working with disabilities in the UK

b. the percentage of people in the research who did not inform Human
Resources about their disability
c. the percentage of people in the research who did not mention their disability
to their colleagues
d. the percentage of people who believe that workers with disabilities are not
as effective at their jobs
e. the percentage of people with disabilities who had job offers taken away once
they revealed they had a disability
f. the percentage of people with disabilities in France who were offered an
interview
g. the unemployment rate for people with disabilities in the United States

h. the current national unemployment rate in the United States

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Keeping a secret
The workers hiding their disabilities
A. In the United Kingdom, health professionals estimate that there are around 4.4 million people living with physical
or mental disabilities, meaning, a condition which may stop them performing the job fully. However, exact numbers
are not known as there are a large number of people disguising or hiding their disabilities for fear of losing work,
not getting promoted, or just being treated differently.

B. At the University of Derby, research showed that 25% of the people they spoke to had not told the HR department
about their disability. An additional 74% of people didn’t tell their colleagues about it either. There’s a lot of
concern on the part of people with disabilities that they will not be treated as an equal, and they have good
reason to do so. Recent research showed that around 33% thought disabled people did not work as effectively
as those who were not. Furthermore, 17% of adults with disabilities said that offers for jobs had been taken back
once they revealed their condition and a study in France showed that of those who reported a disability during
the application process, only 2% of them were asked to interview. In the United States, the unemployment rate
for disabled adults recently rose to 12.8% compared to the current national average of 3.8%.

C. For many of these workers, the pandemic brought welcome relief as they were able to work from home which
helped them with hiding their condition and also better enabled them to manage it. Forcing workers to go to
the office and be there for a specific number of hours is not something that is easy for everyone. Many workers
need physical support and just being able to rest during the day, or go for a walk makes life much easier for many.
It also means appointments with doctors and therapists are much easier to attend as the working from home
arrangement gives greater flexibility. Previously, workers with disabilities were concerned that if they asked to
work from home, it would be viewed that they were not working hard or avoiding work altogether. The pandemic
meant that everyone was working from home it has been a huge improvement in the lives of many.

D. However, with the prospect for many that working life will return to ‘normal’ with the pandemic showing signs of
improving, a lot of workers are worried that they will have to face the old issues again. What we all have learned
during the last two years is that it is possible for everyone to function remotely and it is important that companies
create changes so that everyone is able to work at their best, whether or not they have a disability.

Sources: bbc.com, theguardian.com

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6 Reading comprehension

Complete the following sentences with one, two or three words from the article on page four.

1. A disability is a condition which prevents someone from performing certain tasks

effectively.

2. People with disabilities to be worried about their employment.

3. The unemployment rate in the United States is around a quarter of what it is for
people with disabilities.

4. Working from home can help people with disabilities their condition and makes
life much easier.

5. If companies start their workers to return to the office, it will make life a lot harder
for disabled people.

6. Working from home allows disabled people to medical appointments more easily
than if they were in the office all day.

7. Many are worried that will be based around the office as concerns around the
pandemic start to disappear.

8. The which made life difficult for people with disabilities will be a problem again
if they have to return to the office.

7 Scanning for vocabulary

Quickly read the article on page four and find words which mean the same as the following.

1. change the way something looks so people do not recognise it (v, para. A)

2. a feeling of worry (n, para. B)

3. make something known or show something that was hidden (v, para. B)

4. a positive feeling that comes after a difficult time or when something

unpleasant stops (n, para. C)
5. make it possible for something to happen (v, para. C)

6. the ability to change or be changed according to the situation (n, para. C)

7. the possibility of something happening (n, para. D)

8. at a distance from something (adv., para. D)

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KEEPING DISABILITIES SECRET

8 Talking point

In pairs, discuss the following questions.

1. Did you work at home during the pandemic? If so, what was easier and what was more difficult?
2. Do you think that companies should be more flexible around working from home? Why/why not?
3. Do you think your company does enough to help people with disabilities? Why/why not?
4. If you had a disability that was not obvious, such as depression or a back problem, would you tell
your HR department about it? Why/why not?

9 Extended activity/Homework

Read the following question.

A company does not need to make special provisions for people with disabilities. The function
of a company is to make money and everyone who works there is there to reach that goal.
If someone can’t do the job, they have no reason to be there, whether or not they have a
disability.

To what extent do you agree with the above statement?

You should:

• Write at least 250 words

• Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation

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